My 5K

Monday is running day. I typically run 3 days a week- Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday. On weekday runs, Christy and I head to the gym at lunch time, change clothes, and drive to a neighborhood close by to run. We then head back to the gym, shower, and go back to work. On Saturdays, I run in my neighborhood, usually first thing in the morning. This week, humidity has hit the Indianapolis area. The temps have been approaching 90 and the humidity has been thick. Saturday, I went out and got in a great run with more distance than I had anticipated. Sunday, the heat wave hit. Monday, I knew there was no way I was going to get in an outdoor run in the middle of the day. It was too humid to try and run and sweat and breath and pace. So I opted to just go back to running on the treadmill. It’s funny… when I started the Couch to 5K program, I was not a runner at all. Running those 60 second intervals was a huge accomplishment for me. I ran for my first 3 weeks on the treadmill. My first attempt at running outside was a flop. I got in a good workout but the intervals that I had been kicking butt on at the gym were now giving me a good beating. Running outdoors sucked. Big time. I couldn’t breath, I couldn’t pace myself, I felt like I really had no clue what I was doing. Slowly but surely, as I have increased those running intervals, I have been running outdoors more and more and more. I am now to a point that running on a treadmill… sucks. When I run outside, I automatically control my pace based on what my body feels it can do- slow down when things get tough, speed up when feeling strong or just to get to the next driveway. Changing scenery helps, too. But mostly, it’s the pace that I love about being outside. Also, wherever I run to, I have to get back to my starting point. On a treadmill, I can slow down to a walk or just hit stop way too easily. So, yesterday, Monday run, high humidity, strong sun. Not going to even try to run outdoors in it. I get on the treadmill and do my 5 minute walk to warm up. I kick up the speed on the treadmill and start my jog. I’m about 10 minutes in when I realize that… the slow down button is calling me… the stop button is beckoning. Ack! I push for a bit longer and then cave. I slow down to a brisk walk and decide to recover for 3 minutes before starting back to that jog pace. I get 30 minutes into the workout and am somewhere around 2 miles. I don’t remember exactly. I’ve been running a lot and walking a little. And I decide to push and see if I can get to 5K (3.1 miles) with a lot more running and a little more walking. And I did. 48 minutes. 5K. That time and distance included that 5 minute warm up walk and does not include a cool down walk at the end. I did 5K in 48 minutes. I now have a baseline. My first official race is June 26. It’s a Saturday morning, it’s in my neighborhood where I already run at a time when I already run. I now have less than 5 weeks, just over 1 month, to push myself to better that time. My goal all along has been to be capable of running (jogging) 5K. Now, my goal, my challenge, is to run it at a pace that will beat that 48 minute time.